Manitex Sells Trailer Manufacturer Load King to Utility One Source

Manitex International, provider of cranes and specialized material and container handling equipment has sold its Load King subsidiary to Utility One Source, a privately held single source supplier of specialty equipment and services for the utility and heavy equipment industries.

Michael Roth

Jan. 4, 2016

2 min read

The transaction, which closed Dec. 28, 2015, was for $6.525 million in cash with net proceeds of about $6.2 million to Manitex, which the company will use to repay bank debt.

Trailing 12-months revenue for Load King was about $18.5 million, with EBITDA of $800,000.

“The divestiture of Load King is one of several actions we are taking to reduce the company’s indebtedness and focus on our higher margin core lifting business, which remain our top corporate priorities heading into 2016,” said David Langevin, chairman and CEO of Manitex International. “Load King is a solid strategic fit with Utility One Source and this transaction should be of substantial benefit to both parties.”

Utility One Source was founded earlier in 2015 by private equity funds managed by Blackstone. Utility One Source focuses on sales, rental, parts and installation, equipment customization, remanufacturing, and aftermarket services.

“Load King will be a great asset for our team, further enhancing the already compelling commitment to becoming the leading provider of solutions and selection to the heavy equipment and utility industries,” said Utility One Source chairman Chris Ragot.

The addition of Load King is the sixth acquisition under the Utility One Source brand since its formation in February 2015. Previous acquisitions include Custom Truck & Equipment, Utility Fleet Sales, Forestry Equipment of Virginia, UCO Equipment and TNT Equipment.

About the Author

Michael Roth

Editor

Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.